Turn to Love: a creative village responds after Christchurch

One month on from that dark March day in Christchurch, a
movement known as Turn to Love is continuing its work to
bring New Zealanders closer together.

March 15 will be
forever etched in our minds. The horrific acts of violence
that played out in Christchurch have changed this country
forever. Through the massive outpouring of grief and anger
that followed, hope has become our default state of
mind.

As a response to the events in Christchurch, the
Turn to Love movement was established, driven by technology
and marketing entrepreneurs Rab Heath and Tor White, and
supported by a tribe of like-minded creatives.

Within
three days of the attacks, Heath had secured hundreds of
billboards and posters across the country, and street
corners hosted messages urging New Zealanders to Turn to
Love. He then rallied White, cofounder Justin Vos and a team
of nine others to develop a wider strategy and platform to
deliver an ongoing dialogue around love and empathy.

“Our intention is to create a conversation around what
peace and empathy look like, through the medium of art and
technology,” says Heath.

“Together with the generous
support of digital experts, web developers, copywriters and
other creatives, we worked around the clock to bring Turn to
Love to life and by 2pm on Friday 22nd March - exactly one
week after the attack took place, and at prayer time - there
were more than 100 #turntolove billboards and 400 posters up
around the country, all donated by generous out-of-home
media companies.

“Since 15 March, New Zealand has
responded as a country in the most extraordinary way. It’s
vital we do not let people drift into the background again
and not be heard. In a world that continues to escalate in
tension, division and hate, it is our belief that the only
antidote to these societal issues is seeking greater empathy
and understanding through calm and respectful
conversation.”

Heath says Turn to Love is a way to keep
the momentum going and to make it easy to engage in the
conversation.

The concept of Turn to Love is based on a
simple question on its newly created website: ‘What does
empathy look like to you?’ For Mike in Whangarei it is as
simple as “To not judge our differences”, for KiwiJimmy
in Auckland, he says “It is not enough to be non-racist.
We must be anti-racist. We must have the courage to call
others out when we hear racist remarks. No exceptions.”,
and through the platform, people are able to read and share
their insights.

Artists have been invited to contribute
works to the movement that speak to their interpretation of
what empathy and love look like. People can download these
works for free and are globally available.

“We have
local and international artists such as Otis Frizzell, Mike
Perry, Tobias Hall and many others contributing their art to
the cause and we are also looking for a New Zealand brand
partner to help sponsor the ongoing costs of running an
updated and ongoing billboard and poster campaign.”

Heath and the team have this week signed an MoU with a
similar group in Europe working under the same banner
#turntolove that was established after the ISIS attack in
Brussels in March 2016, with the purpose of developing an
ongoing, cohesive and globally scalable
initiative.

“Turn to Love is an opportunity for New
Zealanders to be leaders of social responsibility and for
our country to become a case study globally on how to
actively create a more empathetic society. This will have a
flow-on effect to other nations, which ultimately will lead
to a more empathetic world.

“The project is about
starting a broader dialogue as a nation, as communities and
most importantly, within ourselves about who we want to be
moving forward. Through Turn to Love we hope empathy will
become a permanent aspect of our national
identity.”

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